kramer



H. KRAMER.

COIN REGISTERING DEVlCE FOR TELEPHONES.

APPUCATION FILED FEB. 2h 1916.

Patented Aug. 22, 1,916.

2 SH-ETS-SHEET I.

H. KRAMER,

COIN REGISTERING DEVICE FOR TELEPHONES.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 21. I9I6.

1,1 95,234. Yatented Aug. 22, 1916.

2 SHEETSSHEET 2.

I5 54! ,5, Wig

vwo vutoc UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HERMAN KRAMER, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

COIN-REGISTERING DEVICE FOR TELEPHONES.

Application filed February 21, 1916.

'0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, T'IERMAN KRAMER, a citizen of the United States of America, residing at New York city, Bronx county, and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Coin- Registering Devices for Telephones, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to improvements in coin registering devices, the object being to provide a device of this character that can be readily attached to a pay station or coin controlled telephone apparatus, such as are installed in public places for the use of the public.

One of the objects of this invention is to provide a means whereby the proprietor of a store, in which one or more of the telephones is installed, can tell at a glance the amount of money that has been deposited for the use of the instrument, or instruments, and is therefore not dependent upon the honesty of the collector. The registering device is of course also useful to the collector, as it will. not be necessary for him to count the money when he collects the same in order to a record of the total.

I will now proceed to describe my invention in detail, the essential features of which will be summarized in the appended claims, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part hereof, wherein,

Figure 1 is a front view of a pay station telephone having my improved registering device applied thereto; Fig. 2 is a side view thereof; F 3 is an enlarged sectional front view, the section being taken on a line 3 3 in Fig. f; Fig. l is an enlarged vertical sectional view, the section being taken on a line atl in Fig. 3; Fig. 5 is an enlarged fragn'ientary sectional View, the section being taken on a line in Fig. 3, illustrating the means for returning the fivecent numeral disk in the event of a coin being returned as a result of a busy wire or for other reasons; Fig. 6 is an enlarged fragmentary plan view illustrating the operating lever which controls the actuation of the numeral disks; Fig. 7 is an enlarged fragmentary face view of the latch releasing mechanism for the numeral disks; Fig. 8 is an enlarged detail perspective view of the latch releasing plate; and Fig. .9 is a side Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 22, 1916.

Serial No. 79,579.

view of the operating lever for the numeral disks.

In the drawings, a pay station telephoneapparatus casing is indicated by 1, having the usual transmitter 2, receiver 3 and hook l therefor. As is well known, these telephones .are equipped with coin chutes (not shown) access to which is had through openings 6, 7, 8 in a coin-box 9, the said casing belng provided with an opening 11 through which the returned coins can be extracted.

My invention consists of a box 12 which can be readily attached to the casing 1. The box 12 carries a rotatable shaft 13 (Fig. 3) to which is secured a disk 1% containing in dications ranging from zero to any desired amount. I will term thc'disk 14: the five cent disk, as it will contain the record of the live-centpieces deposited. The shaft 13 has loosely mounted thereupon the disks l5 and 16, the disk 15 containing the record of the ten-cent pieces deposited, and the disk 16 the record of the twenty-five cent pieces deposited. Each disk carries a ratchet gear 17 to be engaged by a pawl 18 carried by a slide 19. Each gear 17 has adjacent thereto a pawl 18, each slide 19 being carried by a guide 20. One end of each slide 19 passes through the rear wall 21 of the coin-box 9 and carries a head 22 alining with the opening in the coinbox for its particular record disk. The opposite end of ach slide passes through the rear wall 23 of the register box 12. Each slide carries a keeper 24 between which, and the wall 23, is located a spring 2 1 normally acting to keep the slides in their forward position, as shown in Fig. l. Under each slide 19, I

' locate a mechanism consisting of a latch 25 and an arm 26 carried thereby, said latch being pivotally connected at 27 to the box 12. The latch 25 is kept normally in line with the lower end of the keeper by a spring 28, a stop 29 acting to maintain such alinement.

The box 12 is further provided with a longitudinally disposed slide 30 carrying brackets 31, to each of which is secured at 82 a device to actuate the latches 25 to release the slides 19 at the proper time, as will be explained. The latch actuating mechanism consists of an arm carrying at one end an angularly disposed. double camplate 34:

T will now explain the mode of operation of my improved registering device. To call the operator a five-cent piece will be placed in the opening 6 and forced inwardly, which action will force the slide 19, in line therewith, rearwardly, compressing its spring 24. By the time the coin has been pushed in sufficiently to drop into the chute therefor, the keeper 24 on the actuated slide will lock behind the latch 25 therefor (see dotted lines Fig. 4). The slide 19 is now positioned to actuate its disk 14 at the proper time. As soon as the buzzer is operated by the deposited coin, the user will take the receiver 3 oil the hook 4, which will. permit the said hook to rise. To actuate the disk 14 or rather to control the actuation thereof, I utilize the movement of taking the receiver off the hook 4. In other words, I release its locked slide 19 and set its pawl 18, or cause it to mesh with its gear 17, when the receiver is taken off the hook after the five cents has been deposited.

To accomplish the above-mentioned 16'1 sults, I employ an auxiliary hook 37 (Fig. 6) which is located above the hook 4 (Fig. 1) and which will be engaged by the receiver 3. The hook 37 is pivotally secured to the free end of an arm 38 which at its opposite end is pivotally secured at 39 to a shorter arm 40 carried by a vertical shaft 40 the upper end of which carries a gear 41 meshing with a similar gear 42 (Figs. 1 and 3) carried by a rotatable shaft 43 which extends longitudinally of the register-box 12. The shaft 43 carries a series of arms 44, one for each pawl 18 (one only being shown in Fig. 4). The shaft 43 also carries an arm 45 which, by means of a link 46 (Fig. 3), is connected to the latch-releasing slide 30.

When the receiver is lifted from the hook, a spring 47 (Fig. 6) will move the hook 37 outwardly (see arrow, Fig. 6) and will also partly rotate the shaft 40, which in turn will partly rotate the shaft 43 to carry the arms 44 downwardly to contact with the yieldable arms 48 on the pawls 18. The downward movement of the arms 44 will lift all of the pawls 18 and cause them to mesh with the ratchets or gears 17. The rotation of the shaft 40" will also move the slide 30 toward the right (see Fig. 7), causing the canrplates 34 to strike the pins 49 on the latch-arms 26 and move them downwardly and releasing the locked slide 19 for the disk 14, after which the spring 24" will act to force the slide to the left, whereby the disk 14 will be advanced one step and record a deposited five cents.

In order that the auxiliary hook 37 will not get out of register with the hook 4, I secure to the arm 51 of the hook 37 a link 52, which I pivotally secure at 53 to a shorter arm 54 pivotally secured to the bracket 55 which supports the lower end of the shaft 40. This mode of attachment permits the hook 3'? to rise and fall with the hook 4 and also permits the hook 37 to move outwardly without getting out of register with the hook 4.

As has been stated, when the receiver is lifted from the hook 1-, the auxiliary hook 37 will move outwardly (see dotted lines Fig. 6). After the conversation has ceased, the user will hang up the receiver 3. To hang up the receiver, it must be caused to engage the auxiliary hook 37 and forced inwardly. This action will rotate the shaft 40 to its normal position, which movement will draw the slide 30 to the left, causing the camplates 34 to again depress the latch-arms 26, thereby drawing the latches 25 downwardly. This will be an idle stroke. Should another call be made, the same operation would take place, and the disk 14 would be advanced another step, indicating another deposited five cents at the opening 56. It will of course be understood that if a ten-cent piece be deposited instead of a five-cent piece, the rec 0rd would show at the opening 57 opposite the disk 16, and if a twenty-five cent piece, the record would show at the opening 58. At each actuation of the shaft 43 all of the pawls 18 will be used, but the pawl on the slides which has not been actuated by a deposited coin will not advance its disk, as its slide will not be disturbed.

As the movement to release the latches 25 will be greater than the movement to set the pawls 18, I make the arms 48 yieldable in order that the extra movement required to release the latches 26 will be compensated for by the yielding of the arms 48, as the latches 25 must be released before the arms 44 leave the latch arms 48. After the arms 44 have left the pawl-arms 48, the pawls 18 will fall by gravity to their normal position.

Should the operator fail to get the required line, the five-cent piece deposited will be returned and fall into the coin return receptacle alining with the coin return opening 11. In this event the disk 14 must be operated to subtract the. five-cent record. WVhen the five-cents is returned, the phone user Will extract it through the opening 11. To subtract the five-cent record, I place in the opening 11 a glass plate 59 supported by a rotatable shaft 60, carrying an arm 61, to which the lower end of a link 62 is secured, the upper end of which is secured to an arm 63 carried by a shaft 64 carrying an arm 65. To the arm 65 I pivotally secure a pawl 66 having a stop 67 contacting with the arm 65. The pawl 66 is kept in its normal position by a spring 68 (Fig. 5).

To the shaft 13 I secure a ratchet 69. When I the pawl 66 toward the right in Fig. 5, thereby causing it to engage the ratchet 69 and rotate the disk 1A in the direction of the arrow 70 one step, thereby restoring the disk to the position occupied before the five cents had been deposited. A spring 71 (Fig. 1) will return the parts to normal position after the coin has been extracted through the opening 11. A friction device 72 maybe employed to keep the disks from overrunning (see Fig. 4). As has been stated, the backward movement of the slide 30 and consequent depression of the latches 25 was an idle stroke, that is, because only a fivecent call was made.

The first depression of the latches 25 is caused by the lifting of the receiver from the hook; the second. is caused by placing the receiver on the hook. This second operation is an idle one, unless another coin has been deposited.

After the operator has been called, and the line desired connected, it might be necessary to deposit ten-cents for the necessary tell for a long-distance call; if so, the slide 19 for the disk 15 would be set in the manner described; or if twenty-five cents was required, the slide 19 for the disk 16 would be set; in either event, the set or latched slide would be released when the receiver was hung up and a registration of the added coins would be made. The foregoing operation is necessary, that is to say, the operation of actuating the latches 25 during both movements of the slide 30, for the reason that the hook is usually removed as soon as the first coin is deposited.

As the arms 44 will be depressed during the time that the receiver is off the hook and the pawls raised, it is necessary that they be constructed so as to jump the'teeth of the ratchets 17 when the slides are'moved in when a coin is added, for it must be remember-ed that the extra coin called for will be deposited while the receiver is of]? the hook. To cause the pawls to jump the teeth of the ratchets 17 while raised, I form each pawl with a nose 18' having an angular back 18"; hence when the slides are forced backwardly by an added coin, the pawls will jump the teeth of the ratchets against the tension of the spring-arms 48, which is light. Consequently, any one of the slides can be set while the receiver is oil' the hook, the said slides being released as soon as the receiver is placed on the hook; and any one of the slides can be set while the receiver is on the hook and released as soon as the receiver is taken off the hook.

Having now described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In combination with a pay-station telephone having coin chutes, a registering device consisting of a pl ra ity of numeral carriers, means to operate same independently of each other, means controlled by the insertion of a coin to set said operating mechanism, and means controlled by the telephone receiver to cause said carrier operating device to actuate when said receiver is removed from its hook.

2. In combination with a pay-station telephone having a hook for the receiver, and

a coin chute, a registering device consisting of a numeral carrier adjacent said chute, means to operate said registering device controlled by the depositing of a coin, and an auxiliary receiver-hook to engage the telephone-receiver arranged to control the operation of the numeral-carrier operating means when said receiver is moved therefrom.

3. In combination with a pay-station telephone having a chute for a five-cent coin, a chute for a ten-cent coin, and a chute for a twenty-five cent coin, a carrier adjacent each of said chutes having numerals to indicate the amount deposited in its corresponding chute, means adjacent each chute, operable by the action of depositing a coin, to advance said carriers step by step, and means connected with the receiver to operate the advancing mechanism for the five-cent carrier when the receiver is taken off the hook, said means being arranged to operate the advancing mechanism for any one of the carriers, in the event of the depositing of an additional coin, when said receiver is placed upon the hook.

4. In combination with a pay-station tele phone having coin chutes, a numeral carrier for each chute, a slide for each carrier projecting into a corresponding chute, said slides being operable in one direction by the insertion of a coin, means to lock each car rier after having been operated, a ratchet carried by each numeral carrier, a pawl carried by each slide to engage a ratchet on a corresponding numeral carrier, a single means to release a locked slide when the receiver is taken off the hook, and means to actuate the released carrier.

5. In combination with a pay-station telephone having coin chutes, a. numeral carrier for each chute, a slide for each carrier projecting into a corresponding chute, said slides being operable in one direction by the insertion of a coin, means to lock each carrier after having been operated, a ratchet carried by each numeral carrier, a pawl car ried by each slide to engage a ratchet on a corresponding numeral carrier, a device to release the locking mechanism for the slides, means to operate said releasing mechanism, and means controlled by the receiver to operate the releasing mechanism operating device both when the receiver is taken off its hook and also when it is placed upon said hook after a conversation has ceased.

6. In combination with a pay-station telephone arranged for operation by the insertion of a coin, a device to register the amount deposited, means controlled by the insertion of a coin to operate said registering device, and means controlled by the receiver to cause the registering device operating means to operate.

7. In combination with a pay station tele phone arranged for operation by the insertion of a coin, a numeral carrier to register the amount deposited, an actuating device therefor, consisting of a movable carrier and a pawl thereupon, a ratchet carried by said numeral carrier, said ratchet and said pawl being normally out of engagement one with the other, said pawl-carrier being arranged for movement to position said pawl for engagement with said ratchet when a coin is deposited, means to lock said pawl-carrier after it has been moved, means controlled by the receiver to cause said pawl to engage its ratchet and to release said carrier when said receiver is lifted off its hook, and a spring to restore said pawl carrier to its normal position after it has been released, said pawl actuating its numeral carrier during such restoration.

8. In combination with a pay-station telephone having coin chutes, a numeral carrier for each chute, a device to actuate said carrier one step for each coin deposited, ar ranged to be set for operation by a deposited coin, and means in engagement with the telephone receiver to control the operation of the carrier actuating device.

9. In combination with a pay-station telephone having a coin chute, a numeral carrier adjacent said chute, a slide adjacent said carrier, one end of the slide extending into the coin chute and open ble inwardly by the action of depositing a coin, means carried by the slide to actuate the numeral carrier step by step, means to lock said slide when pressed inwardly and means controlled by the telephone receiver to release the locked slide when the receiver is removed from the hook.

10. In combination with a pay-station tele phone having a coin chute, and a receptacle r to receive the returned coins, an actuator alining with said chute, arranged for operation by the action of depositing a coin therein, a numeral carrier adjacent said actuator and operable thereby arranged to register the amount deposited, means to lock said actuator after having been operated, means to release said actuator when the receiver is taken off the hook, and means carried by the actuator to actuate said numeral carriers.

12. In combination with a pay-station telephone having a coin chute, and a receptacle to receive the returned coins, an actuator alining with said chute arranged for operation by the action of depositing a coin therein, a numeral-carrier adjacent said actuator and operable thereby arranged to register the amount deposited, and means manually operable by the removal of a coin from the coin return receptacle to set the numeralcarrier back.

Signed at New York city, N. Y., this 17 day of February, 1916.

HERMAN KRAMER. Witnesses EDNA E. NATHAN, EDWARD A. JAnvrs.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C. 

